Westminster Abbey Tours

Westminster Abbey is one of the oldest buildings still standing in London. It is over one thousand years old, having been built around 970 AD. The coronation of English monarchy have been held in the Abbey since King Harold’s in 1066. King Edward’s throne has been used since 1366 to seat sovereigns at the moment of coronation, including King Henry VIII and Queen Elizabeth I. Seventeen royal monarchs, including Elizabeth I, Mary I, and Anne of Cleves, are buried here. Henry VIII granted the abbey cathedral status so that it would be spared the destruction he wrought upon most abbeys during his reformation.

Henry would later retracted his coronation oath when seeking a divorce from Katherine to marry Anne Boleyn. Anne was the only other one of his queens to be coronated; her’s took place on June 1st, 1533.

These half-sisters are buried in the same tomb, which appears in the image of Elizabeth. The inscription on the tomb is in Latin, and translates to: “Partners both in throne and grave, here rest we two sisters, Elizabeth and Mary, in the hope of one resurrection.” You can find their tomb nestled just to the left of the Chapel of King Henry VII on the East side of Westminster Abbey.